Asendia’s slow delivery

Well, just when I thought I-Parcel is very slow…. Then came Asendia. I never heard of Asendia but apparently, LootCrate uses them. So after bugging the CS for my wizarding crate’s tracking (I STILL HAVE NOT GET IT!!), I realise it is deliver by Asendia…

There was something wrong with the tracking though… the tracking URL provided by LC do not show much…

But I was able to see more in the main tracking page.

So it IS stuck at the destination country since 9 days ago!

I called the local office up and they told me that they are not the one doing the delivery. WHAT? It does not make sense. Anyway, they said that the local post is doing the delivery and ask me to wait further. o__o

This is terrible because nobody seems to know where the parcel gone to! At least I-Parcel was able to track…

Baggallini Avenue Tote Review

Late last year, I have changed job. And I started bringing my own lunch. Being me, I changes bag often and sometimes I just want to carry a huge tote to throw everything in!

3 weeks ago, I decided that to find a bag with organising compartments! I didn’t realise it for years that such bag are much useful. It is much more functional as compared to bags that look nice but do not have the compartments. Yes I am super obsessed with organising. An ex colleague used to comment that I have way too many pouches in my bags. Yes I love putting things into pouch because I simply cannot stand them all over the places. I usually have 2-4 pouches depending on what bag I uses. I also realise that there isn’t much choices in the market. Not much bag companies focus on this – making bags with compartments.

So after doing some research, I decided to purchase an Baggallini bag. There is a lot of good reviews on this bag (Avenue Tote) on eBags, Zappos and Amazon. I wanted to buy from Zappos as it is cheaper. But fortunately, I was unable to pay with my card. It was fortunate as I realise Amazon has it and was on sale! I purchased it at USD69.90 and now it is listed at USD98! And I get free shipping! Well I have to spend USD125. But it was worth it. I purchased some OST and Funko.

Baggallini focus on bags for traveling. My main focus is for commuting rather than traveling as I don’t like carrying a lot of stuffs when traveling. But who knows? Maybe one day, I will take this on a trip.

On the first look it wasn’t impressive. It look cheap. But after examining the material, I felt that it seems to be of good quality. The bag is  made of nylon and made in China. But the quality is different from those usual nylon bags that I have seen from China. This is far better quality. Those cheaper nylon are usually very shiny looking. But this bag seems to be in between canvas and those lower quality nylon bag. I felt that it could last much longer than those bags. But my main concern is how waterproof this bag is. I guess I will find out when I uses this when it is raining.

Of course the main focus of the bag is the compartments! The video on Zappos shows the different compartments and it was the deciding factor for me. I felt that the compartments would be useful as I can now organise my things into the bag instead of putting them in pouches! As a result, I may cut down on pouches. Yay minimalism! I don’t carry laptop or tablet. But the compartment meant for laptop/tablet can be used to put planner, notebooks etc. When I buy bags with compartments, I always ensure that there is one for pens. Because being me, I cannot go anywhere without a pen! So I am looking forward to using the pen compartment.

So, on the first look, this bag seems really functional and useful with the different compartments. The materials aren’t something very impressive. But it looks like good quality and seems lasting. So this bag will replaces a couple of big tote that I have to be the daily work tote. I am going to start using and will eventually “remove” the rest from my life =)

Review: Books.com.tw 博客來 (Taiwan)

I used to buy my Chinese books from books 博客來. It is cheaper than getting from the retail shop but it wasn’t exactly that cheap either as they uses DHL for shipping. So I always have to buy a few books in order to save on shipping. I kinda stop because I don’t read so much Chinese books nowadays.

I always like books 博客來 as they are very efficient and fuss free  – ship fast, never get my orders wrong and wide choices of (chinese) books. Sometimes I just browse and find some books to buy  because the website is so easy to use . I can read both traditional and simplified chinese text so  I am fine to buy the books there. Some people can only read simplified text which is the text that China and most APAC countries including Singapore are using. So this may not suit them. I particularly enjoy the translated version of Japanese triller/crime books. Being NOT a Japanese, I can’t read the Japanese version obviously. So my best alternative is the Chinese translated version. It is also where I got my favourite Minimalism book =)

So a couple days ago, I saw on a television programme that the orders can now be picked up from 7-11! So I decided to give it a try again! As an avid online shopper, I always find picking parcels from 7-11 very fascinating. Over the years of shopping  on taiwanese websites, I always wonder about the feeling of picking up your parcels from 7-11. I know Ninja Van do send delivery to Guardian. In fact, I have picked up a couple of times from Guardian. BUT its not the same thing. 7-11 is like the originator of this concept. At least it is in taiwan. They have this thing for years.

Feeling very excited, I went online and try to login to my inactive account. Luckily I still remembered the password. Within 20 minutes, I have checked out 2 books. I was super happy because it wasn’t that expensive to check out just two books. I feel that it was originally much more expensive when they have the old shopping method – via DHL.

As expected, my order was shipped the next day! It took only 3 days to fly over and it was at the locker at the 7-11 outlet I have selected! Since it was a Saturday, I couldn’t pick it up. So I delayed till Monday to pick it up after work. They only gave you 3 days so time is really tight. If you have any traveling plans, then its safer not to place any orders.

So I stepped into 7-11 and asked the store assistant about it. She say at the back. I thought she meant at the back. You know outside the store. So I went out and walked one round. I took out my phone and realise the address stated the 7-11 address so where is the thing? I went in again but there was 2-3 people in the queue. And I realise there is something at the back. Funny that the store assistant didn’t stop me when I leave the store. But anyway, I went there and key in the pin to get the parcel.  Well, I would say the feeling is similar to going to a locker from SingPost. It doesn’t seem that exciting as expected. haha. But definitely it is much convenience as delivery to house may not be the most ideal method for some people. Nobody would be at home on weekdays!

The concept they wanted to promote is that you can get your books any day as 7-11 is operated 24 hours. Overall, I enjoyed the experience. It didn’t give me the “real feel” of picking up at 7-11 as it is an locker that you used to self-service.  But it is fuss-free and efficient!

I-Parcel Review

I have no idea who own this company. From googling, it seems to be link to UPS.

But I was told by the tracking that the local carrier WMG is in charge of delivery. I recieved an text on Wednesday. It is from another company by the name of iCommerce. So I guess the actual delivery is done by iCommerce. I am not sure if iCommerce is related to WMG or UPS. It could be related to WMG since they are both local company.

I don’t know what happened as I-parcel used to be deliver by SingPost if I didn’t remember wrongly. I know many people have negative experiences SingPost’s delivery. But I seldom have problem with them. The thing that I like about SingPost’s delivery is that you can easily collect the parcel from the Post Office. Furthermore, the locker collection that they have set up makes things even more convenience.

So I received an sms told me that I am expecting my parcel to be delivered on Wednesday. But when I reach home, there wasn’t any parcel?! And there wasn’t any note. My parents wasn’t working on that day so they were in the house most of the times.

After calling the CS up the next day, she could only inform me that it is back at their warehouse due to fail delivery. She couldn’t give an explanation why it was failed and she told me she could only arrange it for delivery tomorrow. WHAT?

Why was the parcel back on their warehouse and not on delivery? It is upsetting how irresponsible this company is! I understand these couriers have a lot of parcels to be delivered. I totally understand that they are overloaded sometimes and cannot make the delivery within the day. But shouldn’t my undelivered parcel be their priority and they SHOULD attempt the delivery again the next day?  If I don’t call, does it mean the parcel is going to stay in the warehouse until next week?

And that was not the end. So since they choose not to deliver on the day that there are people at home. I requested them to deliver in the evening. Their delivery man called me and asked if he can make the delivery now. I told him that I need to call my house. I couldn’t hear him properly but he did mentioned that I wouldn’t be comfortable leaving the parcel at ____ right (unfortunately I couldn’t hear that word well). For a couple of years, many local couriers likes to leave parcels at shoe cabinets, electricity box etc. Naturally many people who unhappy about it as most people stay at flats/apartments so anyone have the access to these places as they are public. The company that started all these stopped their courier from practising these. So, I am really surprise if he wanted to suggest that.

Fortunately, the parcel is from Amazon! One thing I learnt about my experiences with Amazon is that they do listen to customers. The last time I complained about another courier and they actually did made an improvement. So yeah, I am going to send in an feedback.

Carousell Negative Experience #3

Here I goes again….

So this buyer A send a chat to check for availability, condition, meetup details etc. So I replied her. She said she will let me know again. I replied and requested her to proceed on with an offer by tues for confirmation. There wasn’t any response after that. In between our last conversation and her offer, Buyer B have send an offer.  Buyer A was unhappy when she learned that and felt that I should fulfil by obligation as an seller to reserve the item for her and honor the “deal”.

So I explained to her this – If I reserved the item for her (without any offer) and rejected other potential buyers, what if she turns out to be another of those buyer who went missing? Who is going to be responsible for that? This is carousell we are talking about. There are tons of people who expressed interests and disappear! She didn’t make an offer which means I cannot give her any negative feedback if she really does go missing.

As a seller, I am only obliged to reserve the item only after I accepted an offer. In order for that to happen, the buyer have to make an offer. Her last sentence to me was “I will let you know again”. This is not a firm indication that she is interested! I could only tell that she is thinking about it and will let me know.

She claimed that I gave her an instruction to proceed with the offer by Tues so I should have at least hold on to the item until Tues. My reply to her was to make an offer BY tues. I didn’t ask her to make an offer ON tues. That’s a different thing. I didn’t stop her from making an offer earlier.  Furthermore, I said FOR a confirmation. It means a confirmation has to be made when she send an offer. It does not mean an confirmation has been send. I didn’t say I am going to reserve it. She just assumed that I will reserve the item for her.

Buying things online is the same everywhere. No matter whether you use eBay or Carousell or other platform. You want the thing, show your sincerely by making an offer. If you don’t, do not blame seller for selling it to others who have. I am there to sell things not to hold charity sale. I don’t hold on to items just because people need to think about it. I am not going to take the risk and sit around.

Carousell Negative Experience #2

I need a tag for carousell. Why is there so much stupid people argh!

I just met one buyer who totally wasted my time. She asked about meet up.

So I have the impression that she is very interested. So we chatted on & she even say I see you tomorrow etc.

In the end, guess what?

She made an offer – $3 lower than my listed price. WTH.

If this is not wasting my time, I don’t know what it is. Please don’t confirm a meet up or express interest if you aren’t going to pay what people listed. If you want to bargain, at least do it first. Don’t waste each other’s time by going through the unnecessary chat. We are there to buy and sell not make friends.

Selling on Carousell

Selling in carousell isn’t easy. You need lots of patience. Really a lot! There’s all sort of people on carousell that will make you go insane.

Now I sell on carousell not to make extra income. I don’t care for the money. don’t get me wrong. I am not super rich. But I have a full time job which pay me decent amount of salary for survival. So I don’t care if I really sell them off or not. In fact, I list the items cos I wanted to get rid of them (MINIMALISIM!) but it is such a waste if I just throw them away.

Anyway, people get on carousell to find cheap bargain so naturally, 8 out of 10 people likes to bargain. I am not saying you can’t. But I am not like some sellers. I seldom give in.

Here’s some really nice examples of people I met on Carousell:
1) Bargain. I have people who asked about lower price. Usually I just say no. Or if I am in a super good mood, I will explain nicely that this is the best price cos I am selling at a big loss (most of the times, I forgot the actual price so I just price it based on memory. Hey I been buying things off the internet since 2000!) But I really hate people who just simply offer an price without asking. It is like slapping your face and say oops sorry. So I usually I just declined (almost immediately) and ignored their requests for photos. I don’t know about other people. But I never like to deal with this people because they obviously do not want to spend that amount of money on that item yet they wanted to get. And they usually send an offer for 50% lesser. NEVER. I am not going to let you be the new owner! My things have feeling you know!
2) People who asked to meet at their own convenience. I listed the meet up areas in my profile clearly. Funny how people think that seller should meet them at their own convenience places just because we are at their mercy (I want your money! I will go anywhere you wanted!). But me? No way I am doing that. I rather throw my things into the bin then going all the way to the East to meet someone  just to earn $20?  HA!
3) People who don’t read.
Listing name – Blah blah grey blah. Picture show a grey bag.
Received a message what colour? I wanted to say are you blind? Then there are people who asked about things that are posted in the listing. Read people read. If i wanted to buy something, I would read and make sure I have all the information. Which makes me thinks these people are just pathetic cos they are spending their hours surfing for something to buy. Usually I go to search for specific items. Like yesterday I tried to see if anyone was selling Hobonichi (!!! I want this next year. Next year planner!!).
4) people who argued with me. I posted a listing for a random grab bag for a collectible – something I used to collect. I decided to go by grab bags cos I wanted to get rid off of them. And this is easiest cos I bought them so long ago that I couldn’t remember what I have. Then a collector argued with me and saying that it will deplete the value and demand for picture. I told her this is how i work and you can get lost if you don’t like. (Of cos I put in the nicer way!).
5) People who asked if I have other sizes or colours. I know a lot of people listed pre-order stuffs on carousell. Honestly they are just from Taobao or Aliexpress. Get your hands moving and buy from the china seller instead. But it is kinda obvious what is not right. So I am always bewildered when someone asked for other sizes or colours. It is not like I would buy something just to sell to them again…
6) People who said I am interested and disappear after that. Ya, I think they got abducted by alien!! I should be nice to them as they been through alot. But I usually just block them.
7) People who don’t understand about things in general. I wrote about this before. Some kids (Yes I think its a kid. there is only one explanation) have only a budget of $10 to get a hand craved pottermore wand. This irritates me because you cannot even get a plastic wand for $10.
8) People who are lazy to conduct their own research. For some things, I don’t write information such as measurement etc. e.g. a baggu backpack as they are listed everywhere. If I really interested in it, I would go on google and find out the information. Like that time I purchased a lootcrate sock, I went online and searched for the measurement although the seller don’t list it. Cos I am interested. Which make me feels some people are just looking for things to buy. Pathetic.

Thank you for standing up on me!

Someone just stood me up again. That’s second time this week!
What is wrong with people? Why can’t they just inform beforehand?

First case, I arranged for lunch with a colleague informally. We were chatting online in the morning. In fact, we were chatting all the way till lunch. She indicated lunch is still on by saying “talk more during lunch”. Then by lunch, I went to the washroom and met her department colleague who told me that they are going to pack for lunch. I was bewildered but at the same time, I thought she will still go ahead and eat with me at the staff cafeteria like what we arranged (I usually bring my lunch).

But after 10 mins, there isn’t any message from her so I decided to go and have lunch alone! After 2 hours or so of silence, I decided to “confront” her and told her to inform me beforehand if she has any change of plan.

Originally she only replied “yes” as she didn’t realise I was mad. But I ignored her when I saw her at the photocopier machine so I guess she realised that she has made me angry. I mean who likes to be stood up by others? Nobody likes that feeling.

Then she messaged me with her explanation. She claimed that I didn’t message her and she would eat with me if I message her. And she wanted to have lunch with that colleague of her since she is leaving.

Excuse me? The lunch was arranged. And you are the one who changed your mind! So what is got to do with me? I know she mean no harm and may not genuinely realise that she done something wrong. But she has to realise that when a lunch is arranged, it is firm no matter whether I message her or not. I am not saying she cannot change her mind or plan. All I needed is to be informed beforehand. It isn’t hard to send an message to keep me updated honestly.

Second case that happened today… We arranged to meet up today. Usually I will asked for a timing. But this friend is kinda special – We always have impromptu meet up and cancellation so we usually don’t set a firm timing. I don’t actually feel that well last night. Wake up and feeling better.. But since I wasn’t feeling well yesterday, I didn’t manage to do much yesterday. But anyway I thought that I can stay in if she don’t send me any message. But at 9am, I couldn’t bear it anymore as I wanted to go bath. I usually bath in the morning before I start my day even if I am staying in. So she told me she will meet me next week as she is going to her bro’s house. I was like what? If I don’t message her, I would never know?

Review GeekGear Wearable #1

The below post included full content. So do not view if you don’t want to be spoil 😀

My first wearable box arrived yesterday!

It arrived later than most subscribers as it has to travel 6,813 miles to reach here!

For the first box, I decided to take up a “red” house subscription instead of my own lol but there wasn’t any house specific items. But anyway I have changed!

This box is kinda boring. I know it’s wearable… but I am hoping for something than just T-shirts. Honestly, I have a love/hate thing for Tshirts. I have too much of it and can’t wear them often.

As for the beanie, well, being in a all-summer country, we will not be able to use it at all! HA!

Now for the comments on the quality etc…
The size is big for a petite person. I commented on their FB and the support encouraged to go for Kids Size XL. So I have changed.

The shirt are from a vendor that made from bangladesh. I can’t remember the company but I do remember its 90% cotton. But it is quite soft and comfortable. I just have to try and see if it hold up that well as compared to my Teefury shirts (My favourite shirt company!).

The prints are quite unique and creative. Probably exclusive to GG. I like that they are subtle on being HP related. I mean I have all my official shirts to declare my obsession 🙂

[Updated]
The t shirts are from this company called Gildan. I tried on. They are longer than my usual tees from teefury and less comfortable (more thin!).  They are most likely to be unisex hence the length is off!

Here’s the full prints and some comments…

This is my favourite among the 3. It comes in the lovely red colour. It is not too dark or too bright with the infamous quote from Dumbledore and a stag patronus in the lovely yellow shade. The colour combination is nice!

Well, I never like anything grey. Grey shirt, Grey cardigan, grey pen, grey wallet… And of course I don’t like this. Even if the graphic of Fawkes is kinda lovely. I don’t think I ever seen any shirts with Fawkes. But I probably give this to someone else.

The background is nice. I think the gradient is great. But I feel that the shape could be used to represent something rather than just shading the background. The spec and lighting bolt probably is the obvious as most people who think about harry potter immediately. The font they used should be changed also. Something similar to the infamous HP font probably.

 

The Noble collection vs Chinese wand (Ron Weasley)

I decided to buy a wand from The Noble Collection to see if they are any good.

For the first wand from Noble, I hesitated  a bit before deciding to purchase Ron’s wand. I was thinking of getting Queenie’s cos it looks nice. Then I thought of Hermonie’s too since she is a girl and books nerd just now me 😀

But in the end, I decided to purchase Ron’s as he is my all time favourite character!

I purchased from amazon (Purchase anything from amazon above $49 on amazon to get free shipping). Noble on amazon do not ship internationally. While their website stated that they do but you have to get the shipping rate from them etc. So in the end, I decided to get from amazon to avoid the hassle! I shipped to a forwarder to save on some international shipping 🙂

The import version are purchased off China. Being a native speaker of chinese, I was able to place order on China website effectively.  Otherwise, I think eBay or aliexpress pretty much have the same thing. Usually the sellers would claim is that they are licensed products from the same factory etc.  I purchased from the seller with a highest rating. And it costs 1/3 of the price from Noble! Let’s see if they are the same!

Differences
First thing I notice (obviously) is the box!

I have a bit of accident with my sunblock and it got spray all over including the boxes! 😦 Though its not super obvious in the photos, But I am super devastated!

The China box in a purplish box stated Ron Weasley on the box, while the Noble box in black comes in Ollivander kinda of box and there is no name. It make sense if you want to go with the “The wand chooses the wizard…“. The China box is also bigger in size. Noble box is more grand obviously. Win!

Both box come in velvet cushion to hold the wands. Noble have an extra ribbon.

Now for the review on the wands…

On the first look, they seems very very similar!

However they have different length. The one from China is slightly taller! Both are made from Resin with metal core in the center for weight. But the one from Noble is heavier. You can feel instantly when you hold it in your hand!

Let’s take a closer look on the print on the wands!

The one from Noble has more darker print.

As compare, the China one has lighter print!

Comparing them side by side. Their prints are very different!

Finally, their  bottom is obviously different! I suppose Noble’s wands are created to mimic the ones in the movie.

In conclusion, the replica ones from China aren’t anything like the ones from Noble Collection. Although they are expensive, but any fan should buy at least 1 or 2! Replica wands are decent enough for displaying etc. But if you want something that looks real enough, get the ones from Noble.